Soap cake holder



April 28, 1.959 C. BALLO 2,883,791

SOAP CAKE HOLDER Filed May 2, 1958 Fig.l

Carlo Bullo INVENTOR ATTORNEY United States Patent SOAP CAKE HOLDER Carlo Ballo, Turin, Italy Application May 2, 1958, Serial No. 732,503

2 Claims. (CI. 45-28) The present invention relates to toilet articles such as soap cakes. More particularly, this invention relates to holders for facilitating the use of soap during bathing and washing.

In the past it has been the practice to attach a cord or an elastic member to a soap cake in order to avoid having the wet soap slip from the hands during Washing. A typical example of such a device is shown in U.S. Patent No. 2,243,634, issued to Frederick Kadish. The Kadish holder has several distinct disadvantages common to most prior art devices of this type, viz. the external elastic portion is in the way when washing the face or hands. Furthermore, it cannot be economically packaged or wrapped with the soap cake and it does not have an attractive appearance when not in use. The present invention is directed to an improvement in such soap holders by providing a solution for the problems inherent in the prior art devices.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide an improved soap cake holder for use in bathing and washing.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a soap cake which when wet will not slip from the hands.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a soap cake having an improved holder which will disappear inside the cake when not in use.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide an improved soap cake holder which may be incorporated in a soap cake of any shape without necessitating a change in the external dimensions thereof.

An additional object of the present invention is to provide an improved, inexpensive soap cake holder which will enable complete usage of the soap cake.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an attractive soap cake having a holder therein which will not interfere with conventional wrapping and packaging of the cake.

In accordance with the invention, there is provided a holder in a cake of soap having a substantially diamond shaped aperture therethrough. The holder comprises a relatively rigid, substantially planar, diamond-shaped frame embedded within the cake of soap surrounding the diamond-shaped aperture. An elastic member normally extends transversely across the aperture at its mid-depth. The elastic member is supported by the frame at diagonally opposite corners thereof and is adapted to engage a users finger at either end of the aperture to facilitate the handling of the cake of soap.

For a better understanding of the present invention, together with other and further objects thereof, reference is made to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings and its scope will be pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a soap cake and the holder of the present invention;

" ice Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a soap cake and the holder of the present invention;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a slightly modified version of a soap cake and the holder illustrated in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is an elevational view in section of a soap cake and the holder of the present invention taken along the line 44 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the holder of the present invention; and

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a soap cake and the holder of the present invention illustrating its use.

Referring now to Fig. 1 of the drawings, there is here shown a cake of soap 10 having a generally diamondshaped aperture 11 therethrough. Suspended in the aperture 11 by means of an elastic member 12 is a ball 13. The elastic member 12 is in turn supported by a substantially rigid planar frame 14 embedded more or less centrally within the cake of soap 10.

Illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3 of the drawings are two versions of a soap-cake and the holder of the present invention showing longitudinal and diagonal dispositions respectively of the aperture 11 in the soap cake 10. These two embodiments are merely illustrative and are not intended in any way to limit the present invention to the aperture shapes or positions shown.

Referring to Fig. 4 there is here shown an elevational view in section taken along the line 44 of Fig. 1. This more particularly illustrates the structure of the soap cake 10 and the position of the frame 14, the position of elastic member 12 and the position of the ball 13 in relation to the aperture 11. The aperture 11 is, e.g. diamond-shaped with a one-inch circular bore in the center to accommodate a users index finger. The elastic member 12 is e.g. a fabric covered rubber tube or strip the ends of which have been looped through the eyeletlike apertures 15 in the diagonally opposite corners of the frame 14. The ends of the elastic member 12 are then pulled back toward each other where they are clinched within the ball 13. The ball 13 may be either hollow or solid and may be made, e.g. of hard rubber or a synthetic plastic such as polystyrene. The ball 13 may also be colored to produce an eye-appealing contrast with the soap cake 10.

Fig. 5 illustrates a preferred embodiment of the holder assembly of the present invention. Here there is shown a substantially planar, diamond-shaped frame 14 with the elastic member 12 suspended from the diagonally opposite corners forming the major diagonal axis of the diamond. The ball 13 is positioned so as to lie on the intersection of the major and minor diagonal axes of the diamond. The frame 14 is made, e.g. of polystyrene and is preferably scored or serrated to achieve good adherence to the soap cake when cast or molded therein. The only dimensional limitations on the frame 14 are that it must be larger than the aperture 11 in the soap cake 10 and smaller than the outer dimensions of the soap cake 10 when new. The preferred arrangement is to have the frame 14 only slightly larger than the aperture 11.

Illustrated in Fig. 6 is a soap cake and the holder of the present invention properly positioned in the users hand. In order to grip a soap cake having the holder of the present invention the index finger is inserted into one end of the aperture 11 and is used to push the ball 13 out through the opposite end of the aperture 11. The ball 13 is then lifted out beyond the cake of soap 10 and the users finger is inserted between the stretched elastic member 12 and the soap cake 10. This enables the user to grip the soap cake 10 in the palm of the hand in the usual manner. The tension in elastic member 12 secures the soap cake 10 in the users palm so that it does not slip away when wet.

The present invention presents an important step for ward in the art of soap making in that it provides a unique soap cake holder which disappears within the soap cake when not in use, thus enabling complete use of all the soap in the cake, use of the soap cake for washing the hands and face without interference by the holder, wrapping of the soap cake in conventional soap packages, and the manufacture of a more colorful, eyeappealing soap cake.

While there has been described what are at present considered to be the preferred embodiments of this invention, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the invention, and it is, therefore, aimed in the appended claims to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a cake of soap having a substantially diamondshaped aperture therethrough, a holder, comprising: a relatively rigid, substantially planar, diamond-shaped frame, embedded within said cake of soap, surrounding said diamond-shaped aperture; and an elastic member,

Q1, normally extending transversely across said aperture at its mid-depth, supported by said frame at diagonally opposite corners thereof and adapted to engage a users finger at either end of said aperture to facilitate the handling of said cake of soap.

2. In a cake of soap having a substantially diamondshaped aperture therethrough, a holder, comprising: a relatively rigid, substantially planar, diamond-shaped frame, embedded within said cake of soap, surrounding said diamond-shaped aperture; an elongated elastic member, normally extending transversely across said aperture at its mid-depth, supported by said frame at diagonally opposite corners thereof; and a ball affixed to said elastic member at the mid-point of said aperture to facilitate the displacement of said elastic member toward either end of said aperture for engagement with a users finger.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

